It is getting hot out there!!! Have you looked at the temps lately? Spring is breaking down the front door. As we get further into the planting season we thought it would be a great idea to check in with everyone and fill you in on what we’ve been up to!
Have you seen us this spring? Seth and I have been covering a lot of ground this past month telling everyone about GrowIt!
One of our latest events was the Chicago Flower & Garden Show. We had an awesome time and had the chance to make some new friends. We also had the chance to check out some new plant trends first hand.
Small space gardening was featured in many ways at the show. There were vendors selling small succulent terrariums. There was a whole display of window box gardens. There were even some planter boxes designed to get the most out of the limited space that you might have.
One of the other major themes of the show was children’s gardening. We learned that flower shows aren’t just for your grandmother anymore. The Chicago Flower & Garden Show was loaded with activities for kids. It’s not like they cornered off a jungle-gym and labeled it the “Kids Corner” either; they had multiple gardens where kids could interact and learn. Whether they were planting pansies and learning about bugs, or planting veggies and learning about the benefits of fresh food, there were smiles from ear to ear.
The smells in the building were terrific. There were hyacinths EVERYWHERE. Along with planted hyacinths and even a planted rose garden (yes it was awesome), there was also a large floral presence at the show. Mariano’s sponsored the show and had a fantastic display of cut flowers to be purchased right on the show floor. This way people could take home some color even if the temps weren’t the nicest quite yet. There were also some very interesting “tablescapes” as well. These seemed to blend a wide variety of ideals. It was like a floral type of landscaping, mixing ideas from the garden and the kitchen.
Seth and I also had the chance to talk about what’s coming in the world of gardening. The first thing that we proposed is that since after years of effort, we haven’t been able to come up with a better word to replace gardening, we just have to change the definition. Gardening isn’t just about having a backyard and a massive flower bed. Gardening refers to the act of growing any plant. Are you growing a cactus on your coffee table? Guess what… you are a gardener. Aside from trying to start a “Garden Revolution”, we also talked about how a new wave of technology was sweeping the garden world.
All in all it was a fantastic week and we met a lot of people. Keep an eye out for us this spring as we continue to travel the country spreading the colorful message of GrowIt!
-Mason, Co-founder of GrowIt!
GrowIt! 